One Last Chance
by AgentRez
Summary: Tony makes a phone call that could save Jack's life, whether he wants to be saved or not. My ideas for how 7x18 should go down, not based on spoilers. Safe for US viewers to read...overseas viewers proceed with caution.
1. Chapter 1

_This is my idea for how episode 7x18 should go down. It's not based on any spoilers, and I'm almost sure it's wrong, but this is how I'd like to see things play out. This will not be a whole episode, just a few scenes showing how I'd like to see them deal with Jack's illness. For the sake of this story, assume that Tony accomplished what he needed to at Starkwood and then he listened to Jack and got out of there, and he was helicoptered back to the FBI to be debriefed and then eventually taken into custody. For right now, the FBI is on standby until they get orders from the President and things aren't as crazy there as before. This first part's pretty short, but hopefully you'll enjoy it._

* * *

Tony is sitting in a holding room waiting to be debriefed when Renee walks in.

"Hey," he says casually, looking up. "You here to do the debrief?"

"No, Agent Moss will take care of that in a little while. But first I need to talk to you," she says hesitantly.

"What's going on? Any word on why the President called off the air strike?"

Renee hesitates for a moment, knowing that Tony is not authorized to hear any of the details but feeling that they owe him that much after he risked his life to find the canisters. "Jonas Hodges called the president with proof that they were ready to launch three missiles containing canisters of the virus if she didn't stand down the strike immediately. She had 30 seconds to make a decision and she told the Joint Chiefs to stand down."

"So now what?" Tony asks, frustrated.

"For now we're on standby until we get orders from the White House. They're restricting information flow right now…Larry's trying to find out what's going on, but so far he's not having much luck getting anyone to tell him anything."

Tony nods. "So what's going on with Jack? Have the symptoms gotten any worse?" he asks nervously.

Renee sighs. "The doctor gave him something to mask the symptoms, but it's only temporary. She said he doesn't have much time, a day or two at most, unless…"

"Unless what?" Tony asks.

"She said that there's an experimental treatment that might be a cure…it's a long shot, and it requires stem cells from a genetically compatible donor, preferably a family member."

"So let me guess. Jack's being stubborn and saying he doesn't want his daughter involved, right?" Tony guesses.

Renee nods, marveling at how well Tony knows Jack. It reminds her how little she knows him despite how much she feels like she does after the past 18 hours. "I know it's none of my business, but I can't help but think that she should have the choice…at the very least, shouldn't she have the chance to say goodbye?" she asks.

Tony nods in agreement. "Have you contacted Kim?" he asks.

"No. I've thought about it, but it's not my place," she says. "I've tried to convince Jack to call her, but I can tell he's not going to listen to me."

"So what do you want me to do?" Tony asks.

"I thought maybe if you talked to him he'd listen," Renee suggests.

Tony sighs. "Look, if there was ever a time when Jack respected my opinion, that time has long since passed. In case you didn't notice earlier, he's been pretty disgusted with me since I told him about my past, and frankly I don't blame him."

"I don't believe that," Renee argues. Tony looks at her curiously. "I heard Jack talking to Bill about you when we were getting ready to leave for the White House to meet with the President. I can tell from what he said that he's a lot more sympathetic than he's let on. He didn't come right out and say it, but I can tell that he blames himself for what happened to you."

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me," Tony scoffs, feeling ashamed as he remembers that there was a time when he blamed Jack for everything, as ridiculous as that seems now. "But listen, regardless of what he thinks about me, Jack's stubborn as hell, and he's not going to listen to either of us. The only way to get him to consider this treatment is to contact Kim ourselves and let her convince Jack if she wants to do it."

Renee sighs, contemplating. "Alright, I'll give her a call," she agrees after a moment.

"Why don't you let me do it?" Tony suggests. Renee looks at him curiously. "I know her…she used to work for me. I think she'd take it better coming from me than coming from someone she's never met before."

"I don't disagree, but as far as she knows you've been dead for the past 5 and a half years. You don't think it would spook her to get a call from you all of a sudden?"

Tony hesitates, debating with himself for a moment before revealing a surprising truth. "Actually, she doesn't."

"Doesn't what?" Renee asks, confused.

"She doesn't think I'm dead." He pauses for a second as she looks at him with a bewildered expression. "I contacted her a few weeks after Michelle died," he explains. "I was looking for Jack and at that point nobody knew he'd been abducted by the Chinese and I thought she might know where he was."

Renee looks surprised. "Does Jack know about this?" she asks.

"No, and if you don't mind I'd like to keep it that way," Tony replies. He prays that Renee will not ask any more questions, because the last thing he wants is for anyone to find out the real reason he was looking for Jack back then.

Fortunately for Tony, Renee seems to accept his explanation for the time being, putting aside any lingering suspicions. "I'll go get you a phone," she says.

"Thanks," Tony says.

Renee turns to go, but then turns back towards Tony. "Larry said we have to take you into custody when you're done being debriefed," she says.

Tony nods. "Yeah, I understand," he says matter-of-factly but with a touch of shame in his voice.

"I want you to know that I'm going to testify to everything you've done today," she continues. "We wouldn't have gotten this far without you."

"Thanks," Tony says appreciatively. Renee nods before walking out to get him a phone, marveling at how a man who seemed like a ruthless killer this morning could now seem like such a compassionate friend.

* * *

_How will Kim react when Tony calls her? What is Tony hiding that he feels so guilty about? How will Jack react when he finds out Tony and Renee went behind his back to get in touch with Kim? Stay tuned...and if you get a chance please review! Hopefully more will be up today or tomorrow._


	2. Chapter 2

_Thanks to everyone who reviewed part 1. I got lots of reviews, so I guess people are enjoying this story and want more. So here's part 2, which takes place a few minutes after the first part. Enjoy and please let me know what you think!_

* * *

A few minutes later, Renee reenters the holding room holding a phone and a paper with information, which she hands to Tony.

"Her number is right here. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband, Michael Portman, who's a resident at Jefferson Hospital. They have a one-year-old daughter named Theresa," she tells him. Tony smiles sadly as he realizes that Kim's daughter is named after the grandmother she would never know, and now it is unlikely she'll ever know her grandfather either.

"Alright, thanks," Tony says as he takes the phone. "If she does agree to come, how can she get here at this time of night?"

"Larry talked to the president. She said if Kim agrees to do this we were authorized to do whatever it takes to bring her here quickly. I talked to someone at the Philadelphia Bureau Office…if she wants to come down here they'll send someone to pick her up and then bring her here by helicopter."

"Alright, good. Listen, can you make sure Jack is distracted while I make this call. If for some reason she doesn't agree to do this, I don't want him to know about it."

"Yeah, alright. You really think she'd say no?"

"I don't know. As far as I know she and Jack haven't spoken in years. I don't know how she's going to react, and I don't want to take any chances."

"Alright, I'll go give him an update on the standoff with Starkwood," Renee agrees. She closes the door and leaves Tony to make the call.

Tony hesitates for a minute, for reasons he can't explain. After a minute, he takes a deep breath and dials the number. The phone rings a few times with no answer. "Damnit, Kim, pick up the phone," Tony says to himself.

"Hello?" a male voice answers groggily on the fifth ring. Tony can hear a baby crying in the background.

"Hi, is Kim Bauer there please?" Tony asks.

"Who's this?" her husband asks.

"My name's Tony Almeida…I'm an old friend of her father's. It's important."

"Can't it wait until tomorrow? She just got back to sleep after the baby woke her up."

"No, I'm sorry, it can't."

"Can I at least tell her what this is about?"

"Please, just put her on the line. Just tell her that it's Tony Almeida calling and that I really need to speak to her."

"Alright," Michael agrees. "Kim?" he whispers, tapping his wife gently.

"Yeah?" she asks groggily.

"There's someone on the phone for you named Tony Almeida…he says it's urgent."

"Tony Almeida? Are you sure?" she asks, bewildered.

"That's what he said," Michael says, looking even more confused than Kim.

"Did he say what it's about?" Kim asks.

"No. Do you want me to tell him you'll call him back in the morning?"

"No, give me the phone," she says reluctantly. She is filled with dread as she takes the phone, knowing that Tony could only be calling her for one reason.

"Kim?" Tony asks when he hears her pick up?

"Tony? What's going on?" she asks nervously.

Tony takes a deep breath, not sure how to begin. When he worked with Kim at CTU, there were several occasions when he had to tell her that something had happened to her father, and he had always dreaded the possibility that one day he might have to tell her that he had gotten into a situation he couldn't get out of. He was prepared for it back then, but not now.

"I'm calling from the FBI in Washington, DC," he begins.

"FBI? I thought you wanted everyone to think you were dead," she says, confused.

"Yeah, well, that's changed. I don't have time to explain right now, and it doesn't matter about me anyway. The reason I'm calling is because we have a situation here that we need your help with."

"My help?" Kim asks, bewildered.

"Yeah. You heard about the plane crash and the White House attack earlier this evening, right?"

"Yeah, of course…"

"Well, it turns out the White House attack wasn't the end of it. Terrorists working for a private mercenary army smuggled in a biological weapon a few hours ago. Your father and I tried to stop them, and in the process he was exposed to the virus."

"Oh my g-d…are you telling me my father's dead?" she asks hesitantly, afraid of the answer.

"No. Not yet. But he doesn't have much time. He's already showing symptoms, and the doctors give him a couple days at best."

"What kind of symptoms?"

"Seizures, shaking, memory loss…"

"Oh my g-d…how did this happen? My father doesn't even work for the government anymore," she says, struggling to keep from crying.

"You know your father…he can't just stand by and watch innocent people die. He was here in DC for the Senate hearings and when he found out there was a threat he got involved…if it wasn't for him a lot more people would be dead right now. Listen, I know this must come as a shock to you, and I know you and your father haven't spoken in a long time. But there's something you might be able to do to help."

"What do you mean?"

"There's an experimental treatment that scientists at Ryder University have been working on. It uses stem cells from a genetically compatible donor, and family members make the best match."

"And that can cure him from the disease?" Kim asks hopefully.

Tony sighs, wanting to give her hope and convince her that it's worth doing this but knowing that he has to be honest with her about the chances. "Listen, I'd be lying if I said the chances were great…the doctor said it's a long shot. Jack didn't even want to ask you, but I didn't think it was right for someone to call you tomorrow and tell you your father was dead without giving you the choice to do everything you could to prevent it."

"Thanks, Tony. I'm glad you called. I haven't spoken to my father in a long time but I don't want him to die…if there's something I can do I'll do it."

Tony is relieved to hear her say that. "I had a feeling you'd say that…we're going to send someone over from the FBI office in Philly to pick you up…they'll bring you to DC by helicopter. It's up to you whether you want to bring your family, but I know Jack would like the chance to meet his granddaughter at least once."

"I don't understand…don't they have to determine if I'm a match first?"

"They'll run tests on you when you get here," Tony explains.

"My husband's a resident at Jefferson…he can run whatever tests we need right now," she says. "Why don't you get the doctor on the phone and he can tell Michael what he needs to do?"

"I figured you'd want the chance to see your father," Tony says, bewildered. "I told you before, this treatment is a long shot…if it doesn't work, don't you want the chance to say goodbye?"

Kim sighs. "I haven't spoken to my father in years, Tony…"

"I understand that. But unless this treatment works, you're not going to get another chance. Do you really want to leave things this way between the two of you?" he asks forcefully.

Kim chokes back tears. "I…I don't know…I don't know if I can…"

"Listen, Kim, I know you're angry with your father and you felt betrayed when he staged his own death. There was a time when I was as angry with him as you were, believe me."

"What are you talking about?"

Tony takes a deep breath. "I wasn't completely honest with you last time we spoke, alright? I wasn't trying to find your father because I was worried about him or because I wanted his help. The truth is, I wanted revenge. I blamed him for Michelle's death, and I resented him for being a hypocrite and not letting me take care of one of the men who was responsible for her murder."

"So what, you wanted to hunt him down and kill him?" Kim asks, bewildered.

Tony sighs. "No…I don't think so. That's what I told myself at the time, but I can't imagine I actually would have gone through with it. I just wanted to hurt him…I wanted him to know what he had done to me. Of course, after I found out he'd been captured by the Chinese, I realized he was a victim of a corrupt government just like I was. I know it sounds messed up, but my point is, no matter how much we've suffered for the choices your dad's made he's suffered worse than anyone. The reason he was exposed to the virus tonight is because he risked his life to save a guard when I told him to forget it. Now he's dying and you're the only one who can do anything about it."

"I already told you I would donate whatever he needed…I just don't know if I can see him again," she says tearfully.

"Yes you can, and I promise you that if you don't you're going to regret it." Tony takes a deep breath before continuing. "Take it from me, Kim. You don't want to spend the rest of your life regretting things that you did or didn't do because you were angry, alright?" Tony urges, his voice choking up a little.

"It's not because I'm angry," she says tearfully.

"Then what is it?" Tony asks gently.

"I was so horrible to him last time I saw him…" Kim explains, the tears beginning to fall freely now.

"So what? You think he's angry with you or doesn't want to see you?" Tony asks.

"You said it yourself, Tony…he didn't want me involved."

"That's because he didn't want to ask you for help. You know how Jack is…he'd sacrifice himself in a minute to save someone else but he'd never ask anyone to give up anything for him, especially not you. He's trying to protect you, and if I go in there and tell him you're on your way he's going to be angry at me for calling. But deep down I know how much he wants to see you. If you're feeling guilty about the way you treated him before, the best thing you can do to make it up to him is come to DC now and make things right with him while you still can."

Kim hesitates. Deep down she knows Tony is right but she's still afraid. "I tell you what. I'll notify the branch in Philly to send someone to pick you and your family up, and I'll go tell Jack that you're coming. If he really doesn't want to see you, I'll call you back and you can turn around, alright?" Tony proposes.

Kim wrestles with it for a minute. "Come on, Kim," Tony urges.

"Alright," she agrees finally.

"Thank you," Tony says, relieved. "You're making the right decision, I promise," he says reassuringly. "I'm going to go make arrangements, but you can reach me at 202-555-2780 if you need anything, alright?"

"Ok," Kim agrees.

"Tony?" she says as he is about to hang up.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you…for giving me the choice," she says.

"Yeah," Tony acknowledges before hanging up. He calls Renee and tells her it's a go, then gets ready to tell Jack what he just did. He knows Jack won't be happy, but he's more convinced than he's been about anything in a long time that what he's doing is right.

* * *

_Hopefully everyone's still enjoying this. I have to drive back to DC from New Jersey tonight, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to crank out another chapter, but I will try to have part 3 up before the next episode airs, so stay tuned. If you have a moment please drop me a line…both positive feedback and constructive criticism are welcome!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Thanks for all the reviews. Here's a little more…hopefully one more update coming before tonight's episode ruins the story. Enjoy and please review!_

* * *

Renee comes back into the holding room. "Someone from the Philadelphia branch is going to pick Kim up now…hopefully she should be here within the hour," she tells Tony.

"Alright," Tony nods.

"How do you want to handle this?" Renee asks him. "Should we tell Jack she's coming or wait until she gets here?"

Tony sighs. "Nah, we have to tell him beforehand…he's not going to be happy that I went behind his back, to say the least," Tony says with a chuckle, bracing himself for Jack to go off on him and probably shove him up against the wall when he finds out.

"Probably not," Renee agrees. "But you did the right thing."

"Yeah," Tony scoffs, knowing she is right but not looking forward to dealing with Jack. "Look, as tempting as it is to let Kim's visit be a surprise, I don't think that's the right move here. I'd rather him take his anger out on me before he gets here. Besides, I told Kim I would tell Jack in advance and let her know if he actually doesn't want to see her, which I highly doubt despite what he says. But I want to hold off for a little while, in case she changes her mind," he continues.

"You really think she would change her mind?" Renee asks incredulously.

"I don't know…she agreed to be tested for stem cell compatibility without any hesitation, but I had to convince her to come to DC…she's as nervous about seeing Jack again as he is."

"Alright, I'll give it 15 minutes and then tell Jack you want to talk to him. In the meantime, I'll see if Larry wants me to start the debrief," Renee says.

15 minutes later, Jack enters the holding room.

"Hey…are you alright?" Jack greets Tony, noticing that he looks a little beat up from his time inside the Starkwood compound.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Tony says with a shrug. "How are you holding up?"

"Okay for right now," Jack says in a tone that tells Tony that he's struggling to accept having to be sidelined by his illness and hasn't yet come to terms with the fact that he's really dying.

"Any update on the Starkwood situation?" Tony asks, mostly to prolongue the inevitable.

"Not yet. We're all on standby until we hear from the White House," Jack says.

Tony notices Jack starting to shake. "Whoa, Jack, you alright?" he asks anxiously.

"Yeah, just give me a sec," Jack says anxiously as he reaches into his coat pocket for the kit Dr. Macer gave him.

"You want some help with that?" Tony asks, worried that Jack can't inject the needle properly while his arm is shaking. But of course, Jack being Jack, he shakes his head and won't give Tony the needle. So Tony grabs the arm Jack is about to inject and holds it steady while he injects the medicine Dr. Macer gave him. After a minute the shaking stops and Jack starts breathing normally again.

"Thanks," he says softly, not wanting to admit he needed help.

"Yeah," Tony says casually, trying for Jack's sake not to make a big deal of what just happened.

"You're probably wondering why I didn't listen to you back at the port," Jack says.

Tony shakes his head. "No. I understood why you did what you did. I just wish…" he hesitates, trying to figure out how to say it.

"You just wish what?" Jack asks.

"I just wish we'd switched jobs after that," Tony spits out. "I wish I'd been the one to capture the truck and you'd been the one to go to Starkwood."

"Why?" Jack asks curiously.

"Well, for one thing, you probably would have figured out that Seaton was lying."

"Not necessarily," Jack says. "It sounds like he was pretty convincing."

"Yeah, well, in hindsight I feel like an idiot for not figuring it out. But mostly I just wish I'd been the one to capture the truck and deal with the leaky canister…you had a chance when this day was over of being able to get your life back, and you've still got a daughter even if you haven't spoken to her in a while. I don't really have any family left, and I'm probably going to spend the rest of my life in jail anyway."

"You don't know that, Tony," Jack says firmly. "I discussed it with Agent Walker. She said the Attorney General has been briefed on the situation today and he knows that you were working undercover to help recover the CIP device and capture Dubaku. Everyone here knows about what you did to help tonight, and the president knows too. I'm not saying there won't be consequences for the things you did before, but with everything you've done today I'm confident you'll be able to work something out. I'm sorry I may not be around to testify for you, but after today there are plenty of people who can vouch for you. You just need to cooperate with them…you probably have a lot of information you can use to bargain with, but you need to resist the temptation to protect anyone you worked with or dealt with. I know some of them might have been your friends, but you have to know that if the tables were turned they'd turn on you to save their own skin in an instant."

Tony chuckles, amazed that Jack can find time to try to help him and lecture him even as he dealt with the symptoms of a weaponized virus. "Listen, Jack, I appreciate your concern, but I don't want you to waste any more of the time you have left worrying about me, alright?" he says, feeling guiltier than ever about how much he wanted to hurt Jack after Michelle was killed.

"And what should I be spending my time doing?" Jack challenges, his voice sounding wary all of a sudden.

Tony gives him a look that says "come on, Jack. Do I really need to spell this out for you?"

"Agent Walker told you about the experimental treatment, didn't she?" Jack asks warily.

"Yeah," Tony nods.

"And then she told me you wanted to talk with me so the two of you could double-team me about this?" he asks probingly, his voice showing his annoyance.

"Not exactly, Jack," Tony says hesitantly.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I didn't ask to speak to you so that I could bug you to call Kim," Tony says.

"Good, because I'm not going to," Jack says forcefully.

Tony takes a deep breath, hesitating before deciding it's time to spit it out. "**You don't need to, because I already called her myself,"** he blurts out, bracing himself for Jack's reaction.

**_To be continued…_**


End file.
